Mu Changchun, the director of the Digital Currency Research Institute at the People's Bank of China, has stated that China's central bank digital currency (CBDC), the digital yuan, is undergoing significant technological and business model upgrades. Speaking on September 3 at the China International Trade in Services Fair, Mu emphasized the need for wallet providers to support payment options for all retail scenarios.
Mu highlighted that the digital yuan has recently undergone a major transformation in terms of its organizational structure and business model. Now, the focus is shifting towards upgrading the payment tool itself. He directed his comments towards commercial banking apps like W eChat and Alipay, emphasizing the importance of adhering to regulatory guidelines. In the short term, Mu suggested that these platforms could concentrate on implementing QR codes for the CBDC while working on long-term improvements to payment tools.
Regarding wholesale payments, Mu suggested that there is no immediate need for substantial changes to the current inter-bank payment settlement system. Instead, integrating CBDC payment options into the existing system should suffice. However, Mu did not delve into the technical specifics of this integration.
China continues to advance its vision of a blockchain-powered, yet tightly regulated, digital infrastructure. In August, Chinese authorities introduced a new data exchange that relies on blockchain technology. The Hangzhou Data Exchange, newly established, aims to simplify the exchange of enterprise IT data using distributed ledger technology.
